Tag: The Silmarillion

Know Your Valar: Aulë and Yavanna

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It’s time to talk about more of the Valar! Today we look at another couple, Aulë and Yavanna…

Aulë

  • Type: Vala
  • Name meaning: “Invention”
  • Other titles: “The Smith”, “The Maker of Mountains”, “Mahal” (The Maker)
  • Appearance: –
  • Location: Central Valinor
  • Notes:
    • He is a master of all crafts who fashioned and crafted the substances of which Arda was made
    • He created the Dwarves
    • Made the Lamps of the Valar
    • Forged the vessels which hold the Sun and Moon
    • Taught the Noldor Eleves about stonework

Yavanna

  • Type: Vala
  • Name meaning: “Giver of fruits”
  • Other titles: “The Fruitful Queen of the Earth”
  • Appearance: Tall as a cypress tree and clothed in green
  • Location: Her gardens are in south Valinor
  • Notes:
    • Planted seeds of everything which grows
    • She thought of the Ents
    • She made the Trees of Light which lit Valinor,
    • She used the last fruit of those trees was used to make the Sun and Moon
    • She also made the White Tree of the Eldar in Tirion.

Know Your Valar: Ulmo

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Last time we looked at a couple, the King and Queen of Arda. Today we look at a bachelor…

Ulmo

  • Type: Vala
  • Name meaning: “Pourer”/”Rainer”
  • Other titles: “Lord of the Waters”
  • Appearance: A gigantic king with silver and emerald armour. Has sea-shell horns (the Ulumúri).
  • Location: Ulmonan, his palace, on the bottom of Vaiya.
  • Biography:
    • Helped bring the Elves to the Undying Lands during the Age of Stars.
    • Taught the Elves music and seacraft.

Know Your Valar: Manwë and Varda

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In an effort to establish more clearly in my mind the different Valar, I thought I would put together some memorable graphics and a short description for each of the main ones. Today’s post is about Manwë and Varda…

Manwë

  • Type: Vala
  • Name meaning: “The good”
  • Other titles: “King of Arda”, “Lord of the Air”
  • Appearance: His eyes and clothing are blue and his sceptre is made of sapphire.
  • Location: Lives in the mansions of Ilmarin atop the mountain of Taniquetil
  • Loves: All birds, particularly eagles, are sacred to him. He has a soft spot for the Vanyar Elves because of their skill in poetry.

Varda

  • Type: Vala
  • Name meaning: “Sublime”/”Lofty”
  • Other titles: “Queen of the Heavens”, “Queen of Light”, “Gilthoniel”, “Elbereth”, “Lady of the stars”
  • Appearance: Extremely beautiful
  • Location: Lives in the mansions of Ilmarin atop the mountain of Taniquetil
  • Loves: Light. She rekindled the stars, lit the Lamps of the Valar, and placed the Sun and Moon in the heavens.

Know Your Valar: Introduction

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I’m going to be doing a series of posts here as I read The Silmarillion to help me keep all the Valar straight in my head. This is an introductory post, giving an overview of the Valar…

The Main Valar

Not all of the Valar come up that often in The Silmarillion. Here are the main ones to remember:

…and here’s a slightly larger collection:

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